Dog nipped child

[Twinkleandstressed]

Dog was tied up outside corner shop - I could see him from the till point. Only picking up one item. Dog is usually friendly and calm. Child darts out of shop with father and runs towards my dog wanting to pet him. My dog reacts my growling and going to bite him. He didn’t thankfully but did hurt his lip by jumping. Dad is useless and just walks on to car. I quickly go outside and go to apologise. Mum who is sitting in the car is consoling child - I ask if he is hurt. She says just a scrape on mouth. I apologise again and explain that my dog must have been startled but I feel terrible and that I cannot trust my dog.

Don't be so utterly ridiculous, the dog growled at a child running at it. Why would you kill it for growling? The child should have been supervised!

I would not muzzle the dog but would not leave them unattended

Parents are 100% responsible for supervising their child in public places. In this case, the dog did not hurt the child and won’t be left in that situation again. But I bet the child will be left similarly out of control. Next time maybe it won’t be a dog they meet but a car. Everybody has lessons to learn in this one.

You can trust your dog, you need to be a sensible and responsible owner and not be as stupid to leave your dog tied up outside a bloody shop!! You put him in a position he felt defensive and threatened, the dog is not a fault in any way.
Dog theft has hugely increased and a cocker is a desirable breed.

As others have said I wouldn’t leave my dog tied up outside a store but then I would also worry about someone taking the dog.

Whether there was room to manoeuvre or not you aren’t in control of your dog if you aren’t there.

What if the kid ran outside and looked back (because kids will run without looking) and ran into the dog and the dog bit the kid? You aren’t there, the kids parent might still be in the shop etc.

Just out of curiosity what kind of dog was it?

@TammyBundleballs really!!!!

"There should be zero tolerance for any issues caused by dogs. If you think otherwise then you are also part of the problem. I’d rather they were all banned."

So, child beats dog with stick. Solution?

Dog growls and protects elderly person. Solution?

Police drugs dog catches someone. Solution?

Is it only dogs which causes this issue? Should we consider all animals. Cows? Very dangerous. Sheep? Foxes? Cats. They bite. Spiders.

There are dog people and people with dogs. Dogs need to be respected and children need to be parented. I bet if it was a bloody XL Bully the parent wouldn't have let the child near the dog.

Or the spaniel who bit a small child, who was later found to have a pencil shoved inside its ear.

That's ok though, ban the dog.

What a ridiculous, self centred and cruel post.

This isnt great; moving forwards you should consult with a reputable behavioural trainer and check his reactions around children asap.

Yes

It’s not the dogs fault. He’s tied up & he’s had an unknown kid running upto him, he’s been startled & afraid. I’d just leave him at home, it’s really not his fault, they can all react like this out of fear.

No one should ever leave their dog tied up outside a shop, it’s really cruel, dogs can get very overwhelmed and stressed when left alone like that.
How would you like to be tied up outside a shop, you’d get stressed too.
They also can’t run if they get triggered because they are tied up, all they can do is react, like this one did.
Leave your dog at home when you shop.

Since the dog attacks over the last year, schools have spoken to pupils about approaching dogs they don’t know. Always ask the owners, or not approach them at all. Likewise parents should have the same conversation with their children. I’ve noticed recently that when I’m taking my dog for a walk, children will ask me if they can pet my dog. This never used to happen previously, so I’m guessing children are in fact being educated on this issue more. Not a good idea to leave a dog tied up unattended, but equally the parents should have taught their child not to approach a dog they don’t know.

I honestly think you may need to reconsider your perspective. Saying that a dog isn’t aggressive as an excuse for being surprised is a bit crazy.

How many times do we hear that before a dog bites who had “always been a loving, friendly and wonderful pet” before.

It’s a dog. They have instincts that will override training any day.

But I think your attitude is pretty cool. You are sorry and didn’t want it to happen. You aren’t making excuses (maybe just surprises) and want to take ownership. Things happen and your approach is the right one.

I would let it go. The kid wasn’t badly hurt and it’s maybe a good lesson not to do it again. Nothing is going to happen to your dog. It’s fine.

You have acknowledged that you shouldn’t leave your dog unattended outside a shop (stressful for dog) and the parents hopefully realise not to allow their child to run up to a dog… lesson learned on both sides x

I am surprised anyone ties their dog up outside shops now TBH. It leaves you open to all sorts of things, as you have found.
You were at fault for leaving your dog outside a shop, but also the kid's parents were also at blame for letting her approach your dog.

I hope you find a peaceful resolution to this. Would hate to read about a dog being PTS for something that is not their fault.

Don’t be so ridiculous & far fetched, good grief. He’s not eaten a baby, he’s given a warning to an unsupervised kid that’s been allowed to run up to him while he’s tied up.

Your dog won’t be pts over this even if parents do report it.

You’ve clearly taken ownership that this situation wouldn’t have arisen if your dog wasn’t left outside the shop and I am sure you won’t do it again

the kids parents likely will allow their kid to do it again and tbh I don’t think they have a right to be “understandably upset” they haven’t taught their kid right from wrong and to respect animals, that part is on them.

for those saying majority of dogs are bad and should be muzzled I feel the same about feral unparented kids but we move.

I’ve never owned a dog, so I don’t really focus on it, but our local mini Sainsbury’s in a ‘nice’ park-adjacent city neighbourhood has multiple dogs tied up outside every day. They’re often quite expensive-looking dogs — spaniels, cockapoos etc.

This thread is making me realise how risky that is. I’m really surprised so many people do it! It seems incredibly routine where we are.

I guess they just get complacent about dog theft in their own neighbourhoods where everything is really familiar.

Parents should teach their children not to approach or touch a dog they are unfamiliar with.Your dog was startled and reacted accordingly.
Maybe people should keep an eye on their kids more and stop blaming bloody dogs for everything.

It never was particularly safe, however in the bad old days, fewer people stole dogs to sell on, use for breeding or to ransom back to their owners, fewer people stole dogs to torture and kill.

More people told their kids not to approach other peoples dogs, and dogs that went out of their way to nip/bite were euthanised without fuss.

These days people do some horrific things, and expect dogs to tolerate any and all interactions, up to and including violence.

@Twinkleandstressed Please do not put your dog at risk again. Your dog felt threatened and being tied up will have made that much much worse. Using a muzzle to allow you to put them in that situation again may make you feel safe and it might (but not a guarantee by any means) make others feel safe, but it will make your dog feel even less safe. Surely your dog here is your priority?

Keep in mind that if your dog is tied up but you are not there, and your dog puts someone at reasonable fear of injury, you have committed the crime of having your dog dangerously out of control in a public place. Even though the dog is tied, if you're not there, right there, next to them, then you cannot possibly argue your dog is under control.

I would recommend muzzle training your dog for walks that involve busy pavements or places where you cannot see what is coming from a decent distance - avoid going to busy places - do not tie your dog up and leave them anywhere - do hire a behaviourist/trainer to work with your dog to get them feeling more relaxed and safe.

Doing all of this ASAP means if you get a knock on the door from the police later on, you can show you are a pro-active owner, already taking steps to prevent this situation occurring again. It may seem like over-egging the cake somewhat, but doing anything you can to visibly prove you're taking it seriously can make a huge difference to the outcome.

As it stands your dog has caused injury - the fact the injury wasn't a bite isn't relevant, the childs parents have every right to take legal action.

Then teach your child not to run up to dogs they don't know without the owners permission and you won't have a problem.

Even though you had let your kid startle the dog in the first place. Don't be so fucking dramatic.

I am in a few dog groups on FB. Someone had a deaf dog, and he bit a neighbour's child. Dog was fast asleep, and the kid sat on him. Kid's parents made such a fuss, and the poor dog was PTS. It was awful. Owner posted on the group with all his last meal, last walk stuff. Took a healthy and happy dog to the vets to be destroyed.
Dog did nothing wrong. Parents should have told their kid not to treat a dog like a toy to climb over.

This is horrific. WTF is wrong with those parents

If some random kid ran at me, screaming in my face, I'd bite them too! Dog wnbu.